Are you ready for Digital Television?

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - It seems like we've been hearing about it forever, but Friday is finally the day when television stations in western New York turn off their analog signals and make the switch to Digital Television.

Are you ready?

Static is what you'll see when you flip on your TV if you haven't made arrangements to get a converter for your antenna.

The rest of us with cable, satellite, or FiOS won't notice a thing when nine o'clock Friday morning rolls around  and the analog signal is turned off.

WIVB/WNLO-TV Director of Engineeering Dennis Majewicz said, "There'll be a transmitter engineer at Colden who's going to turn off that transmitter. I myself will be at Grand Island to turn that one off. And we go on, life goes on."

TV stations have been prepared for years for the switch.

The big push came within the past year to get the public prepared, but there's no need to panic in the eleventh hour.

Majewicz said, "At least get a converter. If you don't have the coupon, you can still get one without the coupon, or have a cable subscription or satellite. There are some basic cable packages that are really inexpensive."

What if you have a portable or handheld TV?

Majewicz said, "We hear from people who have cabins and they take the portable TVs with them, ones that have the built-in antenna. It's really hard to put a converter on that."

But even with an antenna converter, some areas in the southern tier will have trouble receiving WIVB's and WNLO's digital signals.

It's recommended you either improve your antenna strength, or get cable or satellite.

Technicians will also be at the WNED studios Friday from 10:00 until 4:00 to answer your DTV questions.

More information is available on WIVB.com.